Sunday, May 24, 2009
INTERLEAGUE
Yankees 5, Phillies 4
NEW YORK — Alex Rodriguez hit a tying homer off Brad Lidge in the ninth inning and Melky Cabrera capped the three-run rally with an RBI single. John Mayberry Jr. hit a three-run homer in his major league debut and Raul Ibanez also connected, helping the Phillies build a 4-2 lead for new starter J.A. Happ. Lidge (0-2) came on in the ninth and immediately got in trouble. Johnny Damon drew a leadoff walk and stole second. After Mark Teixeira struck out, Rodriguez smacked a full-count pitch over the short porch in right for his seventh homer after missing the first 28 games this season following hip surgery. Robinson Cano followed with a single, stole second and scored without a play on Cabrera’s single to right-center. Jose Veras (3-1) got one out in the ninth for the win.
Rangers 6, Astros 3
HOUSTON — Nelson Cruz homered twice and Hank Blalock also connected as the Rangers won their second straight in this season’s Lone Star series. Scott Feldman pitched a season-high 62‚Ñ3 innings and Blalock finished with three hits for the Rangers. Feldman (3-0) allowed three runs and five hits. Miguel Tejada and Geoff Blum homered for Houston. Brian Moehler (1-3) gave up six runs and nine hits in five-plus innings.
Cardinals 5, Royals 0
ST. LOUIS — Kyle Lohse threw eight innings of four-hit ball and the Cardinals shut out Kansas City for the second straight time, giving the rotation fifth straight dominant outing. Lohse (4-3) struck out six with no walks, shaking off three straight losses to start the month. Cardinals starters have allowed one run in 362‚Ñ3 innings during a five-game winning streak. Nick Stavinoha had two first-inning RBIs for the second straight game. Skip Schumaker added his third homer in the third. Miguel Olivo doubled twice but no runner made it past second base for the Royals, who have lost 11 of 14 and fell one game below .500 (21-22) for the first time since they were 2-3 on April 11. Luke Hochevar (0-2) retired the first two hitters in the first before running into trouble.
Mets 3, Red Sox 2
BOSTON — Omir Santos hit a two-run homer off Jonathan Papelbon with two outs in the ninth inning, a drive that was initially ruled a double, and the New York Mets rallied to beat the Boston Red Sox. The long flyball to left field bounced off the shelf above the Green Monster and was called a double. But after the umpires went into the tunnel for the television replay — the first in Fenway Park history — crew chief Joe West came out and signaled for a home run. Pedro Feliciano (1-1) pitched the eighth. J.J. Putz pitched the ninth for his second save, getting some fielding help from third baseman David Wright on a hard grounder down the line with a runner on first. Shortstop Ramon Martinez, who made two errors on Friday night, stabbed Mike Lowell’s hard grounder in the hole for the final out. Papelbon (0-1) had been 11 for 11 in save opportunities.
Braves 4, Blue Jays 3
ATLANTA — Derek Lowe pitched into the eighth inning and drove in the go-ahead run with one of his two hits, helping the Atlanta Braves send the Toronto Blue Jays to their fifth straight loss. Lowe (6-2) allowed two runs and five hits in 71‚Ñ3 innings to move into a tie for the NL lead in wins. Toronto’s Casey Janssen (0-1) gave up three runs and eight hits over six innings in his first start since 2006 and his first appearance since 2007. Lyle Overbay’s RBI single off Mike Gonzalez cut Atlanta’s lead to 4-3 in the ninth. Rod Barajas then walked to load the bases but Rafael Soriano struck out pinch-hitter Kevin Millar and retired Marco Scutaro on a flyball to left to earn his fourth save. Kelly Johnson homered off B.J. Ryan as the Braves (22-20) moved two games over .500 for the first time since April 15, when they were 5-3.
Twins 6, Brewers 2
MINNEAPOLIS — Joe Mauer had three hits, a homer and two RBIs to help Anthony Swarzak win his major league debut for the Minnesota Twins and ensuring Milwaukee’s first series loss in five weeks. Swarzak (1-0) sprinkled five singles over seven shutout innings, walking two and striking out three. Mauer hit his ninth home run — his career high is 13 — in just his 21st game, a two-out liner in the fifth against Braden Looper (4-3). Mauer scored three runs and drew a walk, too, and has hit in 18 of those 21 games since coming off the disabled list. Joe Crede homered for the Twins, who used Ryan Braun’s first throwing error in 190 games as a left fielder to take a 3-0 lead in the third.
Rockies 4, Tigers 3
DETROIT — Todd Helton and Chris Iannetta homered to back an efficient performance by Jason Marquis, and the Colorado Rockies ended the Detroit Tigers’ seven-game winning streak. Marquis (6-3) allowed three runs on six hits and a walk in 72‚Ñ3 innings to win his second straight start.
Orioles 2, Nationals 1
WASHINGTON — Aubrey Huff drove in the tiebreaking run with a pinch-hit triple in the seventh inning, and the Baltimore Orioles made the most of three hits in a victory over the Washington Nationals. The Nationals drew their second-largest crowd of the season (31,833) for this interleague matchup of teams located 40 miles apart.
Associated Press